Having recently spent four days in Germany, it seems odd to find myself back in the USA with a bunch of Nazi stuff happening here. While Trump does all that he can to defend the alt-right, free speech for hate groups, and other such nonsense, Germany has actually banned free speech and symbols when it comes to Nazis, etc.

Today’s photo is a rare exception. This is a symbol on the bell that Hitler had crafted for the 1936 Olympic games in Berlin. While the swastika, Nazi salutes, etc. are banned in Germany, this image on the bell at Olympic Stadium has been allowed to exist. (There are actually two swastikas on the bell as well, something I never saw in Berlin.)

A couple weeks after I was in Berlin a couple of Chinese tourists did a Nazi salute, for a photo, and were promptly arrested. They had to pay a huge fine before being released. It’s strange to say, but maybe the USA should follow the lead of Germany in banning hate speech at some point.

Bloodbath doesn’t play many live gigs. Since their members come from several different bands (Opeth, Katatonia, and Paradise Lost) you kind of need to catch them at a festival in which the other bands are playing. Gefle Metal Festival was one such occasion. Paradise Lost played on day one. Katatonia wasn’t on tour. Opeth was the headliner on day two, and Bloodbath opened for them.

Old Nick Holmes, of Paradise Lost, has only been the vocalist on the most recent Bloodbath album. Mikael Akerfeldt, of Opeth, was the Bloodbath vocalist on twice as many Bloodbath albums. So I was hoping, as were many people in the crowd, that Mikael would come out to sing for a song or two. That didn’t happen. #sad